Manchester United's decision to let goalkeeper David De Gea leave in the summer has been criticised by talkSPORT host Mark Goldbridge.
Why did David De Gea leave Man United?
De Gea left Man United as a free agent in the summer after 12 years with the club, having failed to agree a new contract, and he still remains without a club, despite being strongly linked with a move to the Saudi Pro League.
The Spaniard chose to leave the Red Devils after realising his role would have been greatly limited if he had committed to a new contract, having made too many mistakes last season, which ultimately meant Erik ten Hag brought in a new goalkeeper.
United completed the signing of Andre Onana for a fee of £47.2m near the end of July, joining from Inter Milan on a five-year deal, with Sky Sports reporter Kaveh Solhekol praising the Cameroonian's ability on the ball upon his arrival, saying:
"He's a bit of a contrast from David De Gea. Everyone talks about how you need a goalkeeper who's comfortable on the ball and can play out from the back in modern football, and Onana can certainly do that – he was exceptional for Inter, helping them get to the Champions League final."
However, despite the fact he is a fan of Onana, Goldbridge has now criticised the decision to let De Gea leave in the summer, telling talkSPORT: “I really do like Onana but it’s a mistake. It’s a mistake. I don’t like saying I told you so but so many people were clipping De Gea up last season, saying he’s a problem in the team. This, that, and the other.
“He’s not a problem in the team. Man United have conceded ten goals in five games. They’re averaging two goals per game, going in. He’s not a problem in the team. Last season he had 17 clean sheets. We only conceded nine goals at home last season. We’ve conceded, what, five already at home. That’s over half in two games.
“People need to wake up. We didn’t need to replace David De Gea. The defence worked. Yes, De Gea can’t play out from the back but did we need to replace the Golden Glove winner who was hardly conceding goals and the defence was solid?”
Should Man United have let David De Gea leave?
The former United goalkeeper was praised for some of his performances last season, with West Ham United reporter Roshane Thomas describing him as "unreal" back in October, but he was prone to a few mistakes.
Last season, the 32-year-old made two errors leading to goals in the Premier League, and the fact he struggles playing out from the back has long been criticised by the media, so it was probably the right decision to let him leave.
Ten Hag will now be hoping Onana is able to kick on after a somewhat difficult start to life at Man United, conceding ten goals in his opening five Premier League games, only seven fewer than De Gea shipped across the whole of the 2022-23 campaign.
